Vogue Festival 2015: Bobbi Brown & Kate Upton

For the 3rd year in a row, I had the privilege of attending Vogue Festival: London's chicest event, aside from London Fashion Week!

Admittedly, I really wanted to go to several of the talks as the line-up was absolutely insane this year but that would cost me racks on racks on racks... I decided on the Bobbi Brown and Kate Upton talk this time round and I'm so glad I went. The event was such an amazing experience and it has become one of my favourite things to look forward to each year as it never fails to impress me.

Here I am posing in front of the Vogue covers... If you haven't noticed, my hair is significantly shorter and I am in such a mood because of it, I need that longer length back ASAP. All my long-haired girls know the struggle is real when the hairdresser cuts off those undesired inches :( 

Textured Blouse: New Look
Trousers: New Look
Statement Necklace: Primark
Watch: River Island
Handbag: Carvela for Kurt Geiger 

 Oh, and then this bubbly dude from Harrods popped along and we got a snap together. Bless him!

PC: Miriam Pinto

The talk itself was amazing. As soon as Kate Upton graced the stage with her perfect, air-brushed looking legs and swishy blonde hair, you could hear gasps from the audience all round. 'She's so tall!', 'O.m.g. she's so pretty!', were pretty much the main reactions. Literally, it was like Professor Utonium from The Powerpuff Girls added sugar, spice and everything nice with this one. Stunning, stunning, stunning!

She was sweet as ever when answering her questions, often appearing a little bit shy dare I say! I definitely could relate to Bobbi Brown, who made comments about the importance of being yourself in such a tough industry and the oh-so saturated digital age which has made us oblivious to everything around us. Bobbi is definitely a family girl with a big heart. She revealed all her mistakes and talked to us in a very maternal way, offering tips and guidance to succeed.

As you can see, the contrast is REAL in this pic! Aside from the height difference, Kate is wearing a glam, typically feminine outfit, sitting in a graceful position, whilst Bobbi has her slip-ons on the couch, glasses on and hair laid back sleek and simple. Amazing.

After the talk ended, I got the chance to explore the event space which was packed with treats. Although I didn't fancy queuing up for everything, I did manage to get some makeup done by a Bobbi Brown makeup artist who showed me a couple of tricks on applying bronzer and blusher!

Me and another fellow blogger, Miriam from www.BashfulSmiles.com.

One of the coolest treats was definitely having my Vogue t-shirt customised by Margot Bowman, who designed the most chic, Vogued-out elephant I have ever seen! Luckily, I was the last one she customised for and I was amazed at how a simple white tee became a work of art in no time. It really made the day extra special :)

RefME: The Miracle Tool for Students

I know you're probably thinking... wait isn't this a fashion and beauty blog? Answer: yes. 

However, as you probably all know, I'm a current university student studying English with Film Studies and I know that a lot of my readers are likely to be students too. So why not shift the focus for a second so I can bring you some information on a fantastic tool I have been using to get through my work?

If you're at uni, chances are you're probably in the middle of a quarter-life-crisis right now, trying to get through the mass amounts of essays and revision. Like me, you're probably wondering what the point of your life is whilst staring at the Word document on your screen (if that's not the case, well aren't you damn lucky...)

Point is we are all get incredibly stressed out about work at one point or another and if you study a degree which tends to involve lots of essays, you'll know the absolute head-throbbing pain that is referencing. It really is a killer. All this time I've spent ages creating the references myself, following a style guide, spending hours just making sure all the commas and full stops are in the right places. 

All until RefME came along... 

I was actually first told about the tool by a uni friend and I thought it sounded great but I wasn't sure how comprehensive it really was until I tried it for myself. First, I tried out the web tool where you can pick your specific style guide whether it be MLA, MRHA, whatever you want. Next, you simply search for the text you want to reference, pick the right one and all of a sudden, it manifests the reference for you in footnote AND bibliography style.

Now you've literally gone from searching hours on end, endlessly going back and forth from style guide to Word, to actually being able to hit copy and paste. 

What's more, they have a handy app too which syncs all your information from the web tool so you can go anywhere and use RefME without a care in the world. 

I found the app really simple to use as it had the same format as the web tool. I loved the fact that I could scan codes from the back of books too, making my life so much easier. 

As you can see below, RefME puts all my references in one neat list so I can scroll through and make notes if needed. Here, I've just got all my references in one but to make life easier, you can just create separate projects for each essay you have to do. Once you're finished with all the references, you can click 'export' and it will form a bibliography for you then and there. What an absolute time-saver! 

Overall, I'm so happy to have gotten introduced to RefMe as it's definitely made the essay-writing process a lot easier and this is something all busy students will appreciate I'm sure!

Generally, I was able to find all the books/videos/journal articles that I needed with minor exceptions so this is definitely an extensive tool to use. Mostly, the reference format came out exactly the way I would like it to be but even if I had to change or delete one or two things, it still saved me a hell of a lot of time as you can imagine.

Don't take my word for it though, head over to RefME's site or download the app now and try it for yourself! Thank me later xo

Bloggers Love Fashion Week Event: Magnitone & Exuviance Reviews!

Hey everyone! I'm back to share my #BLFW experience with you all! 

This must be my 4th or 5th Bloggers Love event now and I will admit I was definitely impressed this time round too. The journey there did take a hell of a long time in an uber so I ended up arriving a lot later than expected :( Nevertheless, the evening was still great as I am always excited to get introduced to new brands so I can give you guys the lowdown on what's just hype and what's really worth your money. 

This time round #BLFW was held at 4th Floor Studios in East London. One thing I can say is that it was 100% less crammed than last time which made the experience a lot better. As I walked in, I could see the room filled with eager bloggers making their way round the brands and off I went to explore...

If you haven't already, please do check out my Linzi Shoes review as there is where you can see my full OOTD for this event. What do you guys think of it? If I'm being honest, the cropped faux fur jacket was sitting in my wardrobe with the tags on just calling out to me. I am really bad with buying and forgetting about things so I am making an active effort to just go ahead and wear all these babies. 

I had the pleasure of being introduced to the brand, Masquerade Girl. If you're into glitz and glam, bandage dresses, embellished pieces, this is honestly the place to go! Even the tracksuits are bejewelled so you'll never be caught dead having a rough day. If you have a hangover and you need to pop out, just throw it on with some sunglasses. Anyone would think you're Sam Faiers ;) 

Right, on to the reviews!

Magnitone: A Skincare Miracle 

I tend to think of myself as being up-to-date with beauty but how can I really say this when I don't own a Magnitone? Long gone are days of just splashing on some cleanser, people want to take care of their skin properly but without spending a fortune on facials and treatments. At first, I was a bit scared of using any kind of cleansing brush because I do have fairly sensitive skin and the last thing I want is to agitate it and have more redness or breakouts.

Luckily I was pleasantly surprised with the results of my Limited Edition Lucid Magnitone by Pixie Lott as it honestly feels very gentle and non-abrasive on the skin. The key is not to scrub your face, this isn't microdermabrasion! This is simply a tool to improve the overall performance of your everyday cleanser and I can confirm that this definitely does!

Now for a horrible no make-up selfie of me... I'd appreciate moving past this pic as fast as possible. Kthanksbye.

As you can see, the box even comes with a cute hot pink headband to keep your back when cleansing. So chic! 

Everything you need is in the box, including a handy travel charger. Magnitone does sell other brush heads including a sensitive one, so anybody can use this no matter what skin type you have. 

After using Magnitone, my skin felt unclogged and 10x more refreshed than before. It makes a hell of a difference and I would highly recommend investing in one if you are thinking of improving your skincare routine. The best part about it is that you can use this with all your normal products, so no need to go and splash out on new cleansers and moisturisers!

Exuviance: No More Oily Skin! 

The next products I want to talk about are from Exuviance, who kindly gifted me with a Purifying Cleansing Gel and Purifying Clay Masque. I loved meeting with this brand, they were incredibly friendly and really listened to the condition of my skin and my past experiences with products.

As we both laughed about, Charlotte Tilbury has made everyone face mask crazy! Rightly so though, I don't know how I went about life without regular use of one. Masks are a great excuse to pamper yourself at any time of the week. What I absolutely loved about this one was that it was hassle-free and went on my skin smoothly. Not only that, it dried quickly too so you don't actually have to leave it on long at all.

Enriched with multiple vitamins and refined clay, your skin is going to love you for treating it with this. I found that my skin was significantly less oily after using the masque so I am very excited to continue using it, as well as the cleansing gel.

Anxiety: My Journey & Advice

Disclaimer: This is by no means a post designed to give clinical advice on how to deal with anxiety, please seek professional guidance if you are a sufferer. I am also highly aware that this is unlike any other content that I have done but hopefully this will resonate with some of you and make others aware of the type of feelings anxiety evokes. It's fairly long without images so I apologise if it's too long-worded but here goes... 

My Story.

‘This party is just too much anxiety for me.’

If you’ve ever watched an episode of Keeping Up With the Kardashians, which I’ll admit is a huge guilty pleasure of mine, you’ll probably have heard Kim, Khloe or Kourtney mention anxiety.

It’s a word thrown around a lot on the show in a very blazé way. Anything from mismatched clothing to stains on fur rugs will give them ‘major anxiety’. Oh, the woes.

So what happens when we distinguish that sense of anxiety from clinical anxiety?

Unfortunately I think there’s a widespread misconception that anxiety is unserious and reversible. Whilst this may be true in some cases, I think there needs to be more awareness about the dangers and troubles anxiety brings. I’m talking about real anxiety here. Anxiety which takes away lives and transforms ordinary, loving people into unrecognisable individuals.

Hopefully by sharing my story as a blogger, it will provide comfort to some of you as I want to explain why I started suffering from it, how it suddenly affected my life and how I have managed to overcome it….

I’ll start by saying that I am generally a very reserved girl. I only open up to people who are close to me and I have always been quite to myself and possibly even a bit of an isolationist at times.

The first unexpected pan of anxiety happened around a university exam period. Now, I’ve taken the online quizzes like the psychology nerd I am and I am in fact, a perfectionist, ladies and gentleman. As always, I do get nervous before exams but I’m pretty sure this is a universal feeling. What I actually went through was completely different…

Just before my exam time, I had an accumulation of problematic life events including personal issues with close friends and issues at home, where I felt unhappy and discontent with life. I had cut out people who I considered major, major parts of my life. Even those who I had supported for numerous years. It is fair to say this period of my life was very difficult as it was, being that I was trying to conquer all these issues and still concentrate on revision.

‘Block it out, don’t let it affect your grades’. This is literally what my mind would tell me over and over again.

I pushed myself to the extreme. I realised that I had uncharacteristically not put in enough effort with my revision and I tried desperately to transform myself into a robot without feelings in order to push away the life issues and work hard to get the grades I wanted. I had always excelled academically and life issues simply weren’t a good enough excuse for me.

It all got too much for me.

I couldn’t stop the thoughts that I was going to fail, that I didn’t have enough support, that everything in my life was breaking apart, that I wouldn’t achieve the best like I once did, that I wouldn’t actually appear as though I had everything in control. The latter point sums me up to a tee.

All these thoughts prevented me from sleeping. I tried so hard to push myself to sleep but the thoughts wouldn’t go away. I tossed and turned and every half hour I would look at the clock and it would be nearer and nearer to exam time. It worried me more because I knew lack of sleep results in lower academic performance. I was breaking down. I cried as I watched the sun come up and I got out of bed, with 0 minutes of sleep, waiting to sit the exam.

I felt sick when I reached the exam hall. I looked a mess, I was nervous, I couldn’t focus on my notes, I thought I was going to collapse. I had no idea what the protocol was if you couldn’t physically do an exam and I was so close to turning away from the entrance of the exam area but something pushed me inside and forced me to sit that exam. To this day, I don’t know how I did it other than the power of a higher force.

When I went home, I booked a GP appointment straight away. I knew I had to tackle this before the next exam.

The GP confirmed that I was suffering from some form of anxiety and gave me propranolol to take as a temporary measure. I don’t know what I would have done if I didn’t get that advice because I thankfully managed to sleep and complete my following exams a lot, lot, lot better.  The thoughts calmed down.

After the exam period, I came off the propranolol. Everything got a lot better. Life started looking up. I was less worried in general. I thought everything was fine. I even secured a new job that I was really excited about. I didn’t even think about anxiety anymore, I didn’t want to look back at all at that dark period of my life.

It was a sunny afternoon and I had just finished a practically perfect day at my workplace. I was honestly in such a good mood because I felt really happy with the performance I gave. I walked out the building and made my way to the bus stop to go home… that’s when I was attacked.

Before I knew it, a man approached me and started shouting at me and hurling abusive words at me for no apparent reason. I thought it was a sick joke until he continued and continued. It wouldn’t stop. I struggled with what to do but my instinct guided me to turn around from him and walk towards the building again to protect myself. As I reached the door, I felt him grab my neck. It was at that moment that I was confident I was about to die. I just went blank. I didn’t know what to feel. I awaited death. I didn’t know why this person was attacking me or who they were but I was certain they were going to do major harm.

He pushed me downwards and I almost hit the floor but I felt a release. He had… left. I was saved. I rushed in the building and called the police to take it from there.

All I can say is that it was the worst experience of my life but I luckily got through it and instinct really did save me that day. I felt like someone was guiding me, telling me where to walk and what to do. If I hadn’t have turned around, I think it would have been worse considering the road ahead was isolated and nobody would have heard or seen anything, giving him more time to do as he pleases.

Being physically attacked really plays with your head. I started thinking ‘why me?’. I didn’t know the person. I didn’t get in their way, say anything to them, look at them or anger them in any way. Perhaps they had mental problems. Perhaps they just didn’t like the look of me. Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps. My mind started doing the same thing as it entered an all too familiar cyclical trap of thoughts.

Same thing. GP. Propranolol.

It was anxiety again.

I hated going out for a while. I tried to stay home. I looked at everyone twice. I felt like I was going to be attacked again. I was easily scared. I felt like a victim.

It’s very easy to let anxiety take control over your life but once you realise that you can take the lead, things do get easier. For me, it was certain events which triggered my anxiety so it was sporadic but it varies for everyone. Regardless of the type, the best thing to do is to speak to someone, whether it be your family, friends or colleagues. Anyone who you feel you can trust.

The next step I would advise is to look into your options, speak to a GP or a medical professional as they really know what they’re talking about and once you explain your specific situation, they can give you tailored advice and medication if necessary.

The longer you leave it, the worse it will get. Don’t be afraid. You are not alone and never ever feel like you are because there is a whole support system out there waiting to help you along the way.

Time heals everything too. If you keep busy and focus on things that make you happy in life such as relationships, jobs, hobbies, education, exercise etc. you can partially heal yourself and before you know it things will improve.

Now? I feel better than ever. I look back and feel grateful that I managed to overcome my struggles. I have taken full control of my life and I absolutely love being a Fashion & Beauty Blogger as I get to meet so many wonderful people all the time and my platform allows me to share my thoughts all the time. Do what you love. Do what makes you happy. Never forget that it gets easier once you take control.

Xoxo

How Did You Style That?: Linzi Shoes Cleated Sole Shoe Boots

Hey everyone! Hope you're all having a wonderful lazy Sunday... I'm here with a new concept for my blog, 'How Did You Style That?'. 

Styling is so incredibly subjective and what works for one person may not work for another. In all honesty, when I need to style, I go with what I think works for my body type but also what goes with my mood that day. I really don't pay much attention to trends when styling myself, trends have never actively influenced my looks as I find them to be a bit of a faff. Don't get me wrong, I like paying attention to what's in but I just think fashion is much broader than making sure everyone is wearing geometrical prints one season and monochrome pieces the next. 

That being said, my first piece to style is these gorgeous White Nappa Cleated Sole Sling Back Shoe Boots from Linzi Shoes! I was so excited to learn about the brand at their press day, which I reviewed here. I was so shocked at the range they had! What's more, I found that they were able to keep up-to-date and fresh with all their styles, often displaying concepts I'd not come across before in the ordinary shoe stores. Because all of their styles were on-trend, I found it much easier to pick what I liked instead of going around and thinking, 'Haven't these been worn to death?', 'Will I actually pull these off this season?'

Linzi kindly gifted me with a pair of these oh-so-chic boots and I was so pleased because I don't have anything similar in my shoe collection and I knew the cleated look has been in for a while and is going to stay in throughout the season.

I decided to wear them to the Bloggers Love Fashion Week event, which I will write about shortly. I thought that the pop of white broke up the darker colours I was wearing and really added to the edgy look I was going for. Normally I would probably go for some black ankle boots but I loved changing it up. I think it's good to experiment and try something new once in a while, especially with shoes!

Faux Fur Jacket: Forever 21 Premium
Crop Top: Trapstar London
Watch: Marc Jacobs
Trousers: New Look
Bag: Carvela, Kurt Geiger 

Overall I LOVED the comfort of these shoes, I had no problems with them at all. The mid-heel is perfect for giving a bit of extra height without the pain of wearing heels and the cut-outs at the back of the shoes are really flattering.

These are perfect for the warmer months, especially if you're planning on going on holiday as you would think these shoes would be super heavy but they're actually a lot lighter than I thought!

I would highly recommend checking out Linzi Shoes, particularly because they are so incredibly affordable and I think the quality you get is amazing! 

Neon Moon: The Sexy, Empowering Lingerie Line YOU Need to Back!

Women are women. Full stop. 

I think over the last couple of years I have tried to push this idea as much as possible. Whether it's through reading a bit more Judith Butler in my degree or meeting confident women in all different sizes at events, I definitely think that we need to keep reinforcing positive feminine attributes to try and overshadow the vast amount of hate and ridicule that females receive in the media.

The female body is special in itself and everyone has the choice to use theirs in their own way. That's not something that anybody can take away from a woman. If she wants to be a size 20, she can. If she wants to show off her scars, she can. I just find it aggravating that there are still such ignorant people in the world who want to dictate how a woman should look and present herself. Ironic that the REAL insecurity and anxiety is in the person who is ridiculing, no?

Neon Moon = A Way Forward

So baring in mind my thoughts on female empowerment, I was SO pleased to hear about Hayat Rachi's lingerie line, Neon Moon (how chic is the name!) I met Hayat at the Petit Miracles Launch at West 12 Shopping Centre last year. She had a gorgeous personality and ever since I've been following her progress with the brand, I have been amazed at how much of a hard worker she has been. I really believe her passion behind the ethos that she wants to promote and I think that's why it's important that we start to support authentic brands rather than ones who are purely out there for profit.

Neon Moon aims to counter the objectification and sexualisation of women through comfortable and original lingerie pieces which will fit women of all shapes and sizes.

Cellulite, acne, rolls of fat... it doesn't matter what you have going on with your body because Neon Moon aims to transform your so-called 'flaws' into features to be proud of and show off in colourful soft-cup bras and knickers.

As the days go on, Neon Moon is getting more and more recognition from press outlets such as The Telegraph and rightly so! I hope the brand goes onto dominate the industry, I really do...  As a curvier woman, most of the time I don't feel represented when I see media campaigns for Victoria's Secret or Ann Summers. Those women do not look like me at all. When we continually perpetuate the same over-sexualised images, can we blame women for feeling insecure and unhappy with their bodies? Why are we not embracing the reality of most women's bodies instead? I don't know about you but it doesn't make sense to me. Thankfully there is a brand to help combat these riveting problems.

'We want to shock the lingerie industry and work with the people who reflect what women’s bodies really look like. Girls should not have to question why they look a certain way or feel that they have to conform to society's pressures. It's important for girls to not compare themselves to unachievable standards of 'beauty'. Rather, they need to reclaim the right to their bodies and decide how it should look for them and not for others,' says Neon Moon Founder, Hayat Rachi.

Help Make it Happen! 

So how can you help? Neon Moon has launched a Kickstarter and with 19 days left to go, there is more than enough time for you to make a pledge to support this feminist lingerie movement! With plenty of promising rewards, there really is no excuse. From £5 to £500, give what you can, it will all be worth it. I feel strongly that women should come together and really work towards supporting brands that are genuinely here for US as real women and not super thin, airbrushed models. Let's bring back reality. 

Social Media: 

Neon Moon Facebook
Neon Moon Twitter
Neon Moon Kickstarter

Personal Update: Work, Fashion, Boys & Lifestyle

In all honesty when I made this blog I really didn't intend to bring anything personal into it. I was solely going to focus on fashion posts. That's it. However, after learning about the successes of other people's blogs and how they've managed to captivate a global audience, I learnt that there is a clear key thread amongst (most) of these bloggers: personality. 

Don't worry, The Rebirth of Fashion is not going to turn into my personal therapy session at all, I wouldn't drag you through that hell. I just thought it would be nice to share some things that are going on in my life and in that warped head of mine, especially as the most personal posts seem to be engaging you guys the most. Let me know what you think of these and whether you would like to see a personal update every so often. All feedback is gold dust to me. 

You Better Work B*tch 

Yes, that subheading is there purely because I've been listening to a lotttt of Britney recently. I know it's really sad but there you go. Anyway, you may or may not have seen my guest post for The Blogger Network entitled 'Degree + Blog + Internship = Fashion Crisis or Fashion Miracle?' Everything I said was true. At one point I was trying to balance university work with two internships and a blog. As you can imagine, this all just got too much and I have reached a point in life where I just feel like I should be focusing on less and really putting my all into a couple of things and doing them well instead. 

So newsflash, I am no longer interning! It actually feels really weird not being an intern, I've gotten so used to having lots of tasks on my plate but in all honesty, I just need to focus on uni right now. That's not to say that I won't intern again, just not right now. I've been lucky to work with so many amazing people who have given me fab advice and have really taken me under the wing where I've been able to see the good, the bad and the ugly of the fashion industry. I cannot recommend interning enough if you are looking to get into the fashion industry, or any creative industry for that matter. Even a short month-long placement can teach you a lot, trust me! 

I've always been prone to forgetting my age and have always been called wise beyond my years or an 'old soul'. I somehow always identify myself as older than I am and for this reason I feel like the pressure to always be doing lots which simply does not have to be the case anymore. I have so much passion for blogging and writing that I want to collaborate more with specific brands, build my audience and post content more regularly. In order for all these steps to happen I have to really take a step back and think about how I'm managing all my time and where my energy is being focused. 

Hoodrat Realness

In terms of fashion I have gotten so incredibly lazy with style recently. Today I literally wore trainers. Like trainers with grey leggings and a black coat. I know this is obviously not the end of the world but it's not really like me, although I'm really embracing the casual look. In all honesty, if I'm going to dress up properly I better have a decent place to go to or some decent people to impress. If that's simply not the case why should I bother? 

I am so okay with wearing a Trapstar mesh top with leggings. I like being comfortable. Comfortable is GOOD! 

Not everything has to be statement necklaces and leather, sometimes it's good to be more relaxed. I guess I'm realising that a lot of people who ooze style are icons because they can pull on a loose-fit tee and jeans but still have that chic air about them that carries it off beautifully. Also I know that fashion is amazing but life goes beyond what people are wearing and it's okay to have an off day, let me tell you! My advice? If you're like me and have to know what you're wearing beforehand, try and have a day or two where you simply wake up and throw some stuff on. Anxiety much? It's not that bad.... is it? 

'No, I Don't Want to Join Tinder Again'

At present, I'm single. It's not exciting by any means but not depressing either.

I know I tend to throw shade a lot and this is not directed at anyone (cough) but in all honesty, I sometimes have a hard time with people who jump in and out of relationships like their lives depend on being with someone, especially at this age. I think romance is great and there are lots of couples who really make it work. I think everyone wants to find a companion at some stage, serious or not, just to have someone there to make life a bit better but the desperation to find a guy at this age (20) is just sad in my opinion. 

From what mentally unstable people I've been subjected to, I realise that it's definitely better to wait things out and keep busy on other parts of life. I'm just not here for the bullshit to keep it 100. 

So... My Diet Starts Tomorrow

There are times where I feel like I'm at the point of no return with my weight and that is simply not the case. I know that if I put in the effort, I can shift it but I have literally had no motivation recently. I went through a really good phase where I cut out all fizzy drinks and really paid attention to everything that was going into my body. I think my negative eating habits today are definitely reflective of my bad moods. I sound like I'm depressed all the time, don't I?

I do tend to comfort eat more than I should. When I don't feel emotionally stable or happy, I quite frankly don't care about pigging out on junk food. I always regret it later. I'm honestly so annoyed at myself but I have it in my head that I'm going to take it more seriously in three weeks (after I finish this semester). Let's see how that goes... 

I've never been slim as such but never 'fat' either. I'm at my worst now I would say. I look back at times where I was a size 12 and I thought I was big then but I really wish I could have had the mindset to preserve that figure. Unfortunately, when life puts lots of pressure on you in all directions, sometimes food choices just simply aren't top of the list. 

The good thing is that I am doing small things to help. I used to be a HUGE Diet Coke girl, like one a day, always. Now, I've practically cut it out.

I know I'm not the best at giving health and fitness advice but I would like to tell people in my position that it is possible to change slowly and to try and do things one step at a time. Cut down little by little instead of depriving yourself of one of your guilty pleasures and your body will adjust much better that way.